Week 1: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

If the first week of Dodger baseball in 2010 is any indication of the way this year's team will perform, then we as fans are in for a big surprise, and perhaps even a big let-down. After wrapping up their first road trip 2-4 (as I predicted they might), the Dodgers open their home season tomorrow afternoon with a roster full of unlikely heroes and major disappointments. With this post, I will highlight the good, the bad, and the ugly through the Dodgers' first six games:

The Good

Hiroki Kuroda: People laughed at me when I said this guy could win 15 games or more this year. After Friday night's performance, that looks more like a definite possibility. No one expects Kuroda to anchor the Dodgers' rotation, but he has looked great the last two times I've seen him and I'm taking a flyer.

Charlie Haeger: It's been a while since any Dodger pitcher struck out 12 batters in a game. Haeger did enough to give the team a chance to win, and that's all you can ask of a fifth starter. He got burned by one tough pitch yesterday. The back end of the Dodgers' rotation is exceeding expectations to this point.

The Bench: As deep and as good as the Dodger bench was last season, it may be even better this season. Ronnie Belliard knocked the cover off the ball this week, while Reed Johnson and Garret Anderson looked solid filling in for the injured Andre Ethier. As a whole, the bench slugged .566 for the week. Look for this trend to continue as guys take full advantage of their spot starts.

Russell Martin: It's good to see Russ hitting again. And he's getting on base. Having already drawn six walks, his OBP rests at an astounding .611, tops on the team thus far. Any consistency with his bat would be a huge plus for the Dodger lineup as the season progresses.


The Bad

The Bullpen: All the pitching concerns for the Dodgers were centered on the starting rotation prior to the start of the season. I find myself more concerned with the performance of the bullpen after this week. Dodger relievers took three of the four losses, including two consecutive in which they blew leads late in the game. That's not Dodger baseball. The longing for the return of Hong-Chih Kuo and Ronald Belisario intensifies.


The Ugly

Vicente Padilla: The Dodgers' opening day starter closes the week with an 11.42 ERA through two starts. And he was supposed to replace Randy Wolf? Wolf is 1-0 with a 4.04 ERA in Milwaukee through two starts. You tell me which pitcher you'd rather have.

George Sherrill: What on Earth has happened to Sherrill? All of a sudden he can't get anyone out. He single-handedly lost the game for the Dodgers on Saturday. The Dodgers have no shot at the postseason if Sherrill can't set up Jonathan Broxton. No shot. Right now he's the only left-handed arm in the bullpen. Too much responsibility rests on that arm for him to perform this poorly and get away with it.


Certainly, this is not the start, both individually and as a team, that most people pictured for the 2010 Dodger squad. Still, we're only a week into the season. There's a lot more baseball to be played, and I've seen enough positive output during this first week of games to keep me confident in the Dodgers' chances of making another World Series run this year. Now let's take a look at some other notables from around the league this week:

Division leaders in the American League are all surprises after Week 1. Toronto, Detroit, and Oakland round out the list. Then again, Toronto played Texas and Baltimore this week. Detroit played Kansas City and Cleveland. Oakland, however, took three out of four from Seattle at home and then two out of three from the Angels in Anaheim. Impressive start for the A's. How do they always manage to be competitive despite consistently dumping their top players year in and year out?

On the other side of the coin, there are no surprises in the National League standings on this Monday (unless you anticipated the Dodgers being atop the NL West). The Giants look like the real deal, the Cardinals are solid as usual, and the Phillies continue to dominate teams. I still stand by my preseason prediction of the Brewers being a darkhorse in the NL Central.

Does 2010 mark the resurgence of Arizona D'Backs outfielder Chris Young? What a week for Young, driving in eleven runs and smashing three roundtrippers. Watch out for the D'Backs if Young stays hot. And in Texas, Nelson Cruz leads the AL in home runs and RBI after one week of play. If the Rangers get their bullpen situation straightened out, they'll be a dangerous team this summer as well.